Economic Crises
This is a short video I put together about the financial crises and how we got here. Powerful financial institutions, corporations, Wall Street, the mortgage industry, federal agencies, government policy and The Federal Reserve caused this crises. However it is the American People the 99% who are being punished by joblessness, foreclosures, loss of unemployment benefits, loss of healthcare, hunger, homelessness, and austerity. Meanwhile after the 1% got record bailouts, they continue to engage in trading highly risky derivatives and other financial instruments, have seen major tax-cuts, have been making record profits, and have become even larger then before the crises began. Another financial crises could come anytime being some of the same types of problems that caused this crises are still occurring. It's time the American People the 99% rise up and let their voices be heard. It's time the 1% start being held accountable for their gross mismanagement of the economy and absolute malfeasance. We must stand together and demand the 1% give into the American People's demands.
No more should the people be bailing out the financial sector with taxpayers funds. No more should they take highly risky gambles with the American people's money. No more should the private sector be allowed to engage in predatory lending. No more should white-collar crime go unpunished but should be punished severely. No more should CEOs make record bonuses while the American people see record hardship. No more should the Federal Reserve operate in secret, bail out large domestic and foreign banks, and mismanage the financial system. No more should the wealthy and big business receive large tax cuts. No more should government agencies ignore the unethical and illegal behavior in the private sector. No more should government institutions encourage risky borrowing and lending. No more should political leaders get a free pass for their gross misconduct in the handling of the American economy. No more should the jobless, homeless, hungry, struggling families and individuals be ignored by our free market, the government, and society. No more will we stay silent but we will make our voices heard. It's time to take back the country from the 1% and put it back in the people's hands. It's time for a peaceful revolution to bring about the change. It's time to protest, to write, to blog, to make phone calls, to speak with people, its time to Occupy!
The movie above is about our last financial crises but I fear another one is coming. We could see another financial crises anytime and the next one could be far worse then the last one, be prepared! The Euro will probably eventually collapse and the United States dollar could be brought along with it. When the Euro collapses the markets all over Europe will panic and this panic will spread to the United States and Asia. The sovereign debt crises here and in Europe puts us in an especially vulnerable position to suffer absolutely terrible hardship when and if the fall of the currency occurs. We could turn into third world economies overnight. The markets would crash to have record losses, the banks house of cards of risky investments would collapse, corporations stock would evaporate and their supply chain cut off, consumers would see their savings evaporate and soon the stores they buy the essentials will stop selling their goods because they would have went into bankruptcy or simply could not get the supplies to their stores, and governments would see their financial coffers already overburdened with debt dissolve into absolute insolvency. This time there would be no government bailing anyone out because their would be nothing there to bail them out with. There will be chaos all around and governments would take drastic steps to restore order. New currencies could be introduced, the world's governments could get together and try to reset the financial situation and try to reset the debt of the all the sovereign nations to 0% after some sort of treaty dissolving all debt, banks and markets would likely become heavily regulated and perhaps for a time centralized, food and medical supplies would be gathered by governments to try to provide for their populace, banks, large corporations, and wealthy investors would be asked (forced really) to contribute to the recovery, and the people would be asked to volunteer in areas of aide and security.
The people will panic and when the people panic many of the people get stupid. Panicking will insure however things will be even worse then they have to be. The best thing you can do in such a crises is not to panic and immediately if you have not prepared already is buy or barter for supplies that are essential to life. Eventually the runs on the stores will lead to shortages at least for a time. Forget about your investments if things have already crashed they will be worthless. Even money you have in the bank may not be available because the banks would have collapsed and the governments having no money to bail them out. If the government does attempt to bail them out in such a crises this will lead to massive inflation not seen since World War II in Europe. Money would eventually be not worth the paper its printed on. It could take 300 to 400 dollars or even more to buy a small cart of groceries. Many people will return to the barter system instead as the currency will be worthless. Gold and silver is not going to save you in the end either even though some of the gold peddlers insist it will. Gold and silver may help you early in the crises as some merchants will see it as a safer bet then the massively deflated dollar. Eventually though it will be the essentials that will carry you through. Such a crises will probably last for five years to a decade. I know this sounds outrageous but that's how long it will take for the country to regain its footing. Of course the really bad stuff will only be for about three to six months. Thus being prepared by a year of the essentials is prudent. Buy more if you can because what you don't need can be sold or given to your neighbors in such a crises. In such crises families and communities coming together is what will carry them through. Some will choose to go solo but eventually will need help from others. The key in all of this is preparing now, planing now, and learning not to rely on investments alone as they may one day not be there.
In saying all this I am in no way trying to scare people. I am not attempting to spread some conspiracy and doomsday scenario. I am not buying fully into the libertarian financial theories such as those espoused by Ron Paul as I think some of them are flawed. I am not encouraging people to stop investing as to do so will ensure with 100% certainty that such a crises will occur if everyone starts to do that. I am not saying this is going to happen this year, the next, or even the next ten years just that it could. I am not suggesting should a crises occur this is how things will happen only the possible results of such a crises. I am not suggesting that such a crises will cause panic and chaos only that this is human nature when people panic. Financial crises have been with humanity since the beginning even before currency as we know it. There have been supply shortages with humanity since ancient times. We kid ourselves to think we evolved out of these risk, just the opposite we are more vulnerable to such risk then in earlier times. The reason we are so dependent on others for our day to day living. If the farmers aren't able to produce a crop we starve to death in three months. If the water company shuts off the water we die of dehydration in three days. If the electricity shuts off we die of exposure in one to three weeks if during a cold or hot time of year. If the government cuts off aide to the people thousands die within a year. If our nations blue-collar workers become unable to work many die within weeks. We are so dependent on each other even libertarians have to admit that. In the old days we knew how to farm, to make clothing, to sew, to cook without electricity, to do home remedies without doctors, to build houses, to gather well water, to provide for ourselves and our families. Today especially my generation and the younger generations know next to nothing of that. Besides all this many are in poor health and could not easily do those things if we had to go back to the old ways for a while.
We are more vulnerable to crises today because of these things mentioned above. In spite of the crises many of us have had a period of prosperity, convenience, and comfort unparalleled in history. We grew up without having to work truly that hard for anything. We grew up just expecting whatever we needed to be there. We grew up in a time unparalleled in human advancement. Technology has allowed us to deal with things that have burdened humankind for millennium. Modern conveniences have allowed us to become unskilled and physically weak. The internet has provided an unparalleled expansion of knowledge but at the same time have made us not develop the skills needed to learn something at a deep and fundamental level. We know a bunch of facts about a bunch of things but no nothing or little at a deep level. In other words we are not as smart as we think we are. Look at our ancestors they could pass down stories and knowledge by memory alone most of us because information is so readily available have in comparison weak memories. We have it so comfortable refrigerators, air-conditioning, electric lights, electric or gas heating and stoves, we turn on the faucet and water comes out, we have a flush toilet in our homes sounds silly but our ancestors did not have this luxury, look we even have a computer or some other sort of electronic device that your reading this on. We have so much available and so much potential but do not even take the time to appreciate it. Most of us have family, friends, and communities to help us if we need help, that love and care about us, and that are vital to each others survival. Its time we learn to appreciate each other and what we have for we know we will not have them forever.
